Jo, yes, this was the case for many people I have found on the censuses. In order to appear more respectable, the women (especially...and more so than men that I have found) reported themselves as widowed rather than divorced. Remember this was 100 or so years ago and women were not as liberated as we have become in the last 30 years. Also it might have been a bit of a protection thing for them. It was a sad thing to be a widow, but a shameful thing to be a divorcee. I was divorced in 1974 and even then it was considered a bit shameful. Women didn't want me (a brazen hussy, I suppose!) around their husbands. So nope, its not just your family! ----- Original Message ----- From: <MNGenLdy@aol.com> To: <MNHennep-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, April 21, 2007 2:49 PM Subject: [MNHennep] Divorces & census records > Hi all > > I am working on family census records and I have found a few occasions > where > this has occurred and I find it interesting. > > A couple are divorced and I find both of them in the census records. He > is > listed as Divorced, but when I find ex-wife with the children, she is > listed > as Widowed. > > Was it really so shameful that they lied? I am not talking ancient > history > here, I am talking censuses in the early 1900's. > A cousin of my grandmother's is listed this way, as is my grandfather's > brother. Both were very much living, but the ex-wives claimed they were > widowed. > I do know that many times the children never saw their father or his side > of > the family again. My mother's cousins were young adults the evening they > knocked on the door and asked to speak to Harry Hastings. When my > grandfather > went to the door, the 2 young men introduced themselves as his brother > Chet's > sons, they had not seen their father in over 15 years. > > I remember when I got my divorce my in-laws were terribly distressed > because > "what were they going to tell their friends?" Personally, I thought they > should tell them the truth. <<grin>> That was in 1976. > > Anyway - I am curious as to whether others have found this situation or > is > my family a bit strange? LOL > > Jo > > > > > > ************************************** See what's free at > http://www.aol.com. > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > MNHENNEP-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >